Roberta Boscolo writes on LinkedIn: The Illusion of Recycling. ONLY 9% of the World’s Plastic Waste Gets Recycled.

91% of plastic waste worldwide is still incinerated, landfilled, or mismanaged—often ending up in our oceans.

Why isn’t recycling working?

Most plastics are not created for circularity. The system is flawed because:
❌ Plastics are often incompatible, making sorting expensive.
❌ Only PET (#1) and HDPE (#2) are widely recycled.
❌ Virgin plastic, subsidized by fossil fuels, is cheaper than recycled plastic.
❌ The rise of flexible packaging (like snack wrappers) makes recycling even harder.

So, What Can Be Done?

To stem the tide of plastic waste, systemic change is needed:
✔️ Banning single-use and unrecyclable plastics
✔️ Advancing a global plastics treaty
✔️ Phasing out fossil fuel subsidies
✔️ Holding plastic producers accountable

Plastic pollution is a design flaw in our economic system. We need bold policy changes and innovative solutions to break free from plastic dependence.